Change Your Fate
by LovelyLoreley
Summary: Annie Cresta, age 16, volunteers for the Hunger Games alongside her old time friend, Kirin Dolaris, age 18. Kirin has been trained since childhood for the Games; Annie has not. Where will mentor Finnick Odair place his bets?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One - The Unforgettable Reaping

Tessa came to my family's house early that day, the day of the Reaping, so that we could get ready together. It was custom that we all dress lavishly, best if we somehow represented District 4 in some way, but neither of us really understood why that would matter. After all, if a Career was just going to volunteer as soon as a name was drawn, why should the rest of us bother? But this year it would matter.

I knew very well that there were no female Careers to be chosen this year. They had wanted to train me, but one of the mentors, the young man Finnick who won five years ago, said I wasn't the right type, whatever that was supposed to mean.

"Annie," Tessa murmured as she helped me to curl my hair back on top of my head. "Who do you think will volunteer this year?"

"Probably Kirin. He's the strongest of the eighteens; we all know he has the best chance. But for the girls, I honestly don't know. Maybe none. After all, I don't know that any of the trainees are ready, and they all have at least another year to be reaped."

"Well, let's hope that one of them gets picked, then. But Annie, what will you do if Kirin does volunteer?"

"Cheer him on, I guess," I squirmed uncomfortably. Kirin had been my friend since childhood. He was two years older than me, and had been the one who taught me to swim, fish, and tie fishing nets. We were very close, and I hadn't really wanted to think about what would happen to him if he volunteered for the games.

"That's it? But I thought you guys were, like, together?" Tessa questioned me.

"No," I argued quickly, "It's nothing like that. Besides, what else could I do?" She conceded my point and mercifully ended the conversation. We dressed in similar turquoise dresses and shell jewelry and walked out toward the center of town, where the new shrimp factory stood proud and flashing in the sunlight.

Kirin fell into the line with us as we waited to sign in with a prick of blood. He looked sideways at me. "I'm volunteering today." He said it gruffly, but I could also detect pride in his voice. He was ready; he would do well, perhaps even win and bring more glory to our district.

"Good for you," I murmured, giving him a swift hug before allowing the Capitol Guard to prick my finger. I followed Tessa to the place where the other sixteen year old females were standing. We could all feel it in the air, the tension of not knowing what girl would volunteer – of not knowing if a girl would volunteer at all. I couldn't look at any of the other girls, and I knew they were similarly trying to avoid everyone else's gaze. This would be an uncomfortable reaping.

A stage was set up in front of the shrimp factory, and two giant television screens waited with the Capitol logo, waited to broadcast the reapings of the other districts. We all filed in slowly, the guys relaxed, the girls on edge. A young man with curly bright yellow hair (and I do mean _yellow_, not like the lovely natural blond of many of the people in this District) bounced onto the stage with a cheery wave.

"Happy Hunger Games!" He shouted into the microphone, which screeched in protest. I giggled quietly at his overenthusiasm. I didn't recognize him from last year's Reaping, so he must be new here. "In just a few minutes today's Reaping will begin with District 1, and soon after that will be your chance to provide tributes to the Games! Won't that be exciting?"

Everyone cheered, but I noticed that while the guys were all whooping and clapping Kirin on the back, the girls were half-hearted at best. Some of the younger ones in the front were positively shaking. A knot had wormed its way into my stomach, and I just wanted this Reaping to be over with so that we could cheer on our tributes.

Finally, the speakers in the square began to play a triumphant fanfare, and the screens faded to show Caesar Flickerman's face. "Hello, Panem! Today is the day that the 70th Hunger Games begin. May the odds be ever in your favor, tributes!" He gave the screen a saucy wink before it switched to the cameras trained on the District 1 reaping.

We watched silently as names were drawn and careers volunteered. The boy from District 1 was a scary looking muscled tribute, but the girl from District 2 looked much more like a vulture. I gulped, thinking of Kirin fighting against these kids. I just hoped he was ready.

And suddenly it was our turn to draw names. Sunshine hair smiled widely on the screens, showing all of his gleaming teeth. "Well! Shall we begin with the men this year? They look anxious to cheer on their tribute!" He picked up a dark blue shell from the table in front of him and reached in to pull out a name. "Turner Kellepsy!"

"I volunteer as tribute to the Games." Kirin's voice rang out clearly above the crowd. He walked proudly forward and I cheered as loudly as everyone else as he waved from the stage.

"And what's your name young man?" Sunshine head asked him.

"Kirin Dolaris," he replied confidently.

"I give you, Kirin! A promising young tribute, to be sure," Sunshine gushed. "And now for the ladies, hmm?" He picked up a second shell, this one pure white, and drew out a small slip of paper. "Delaney Gotha!"

Everything was silent for a few seconds. I stared straight ahead, dreading to see who this girl was. Finally a girl in the front row took a shaky step forward. No. My heart froze in that second. We could not sacrifice a thirteen year old to the games. She had barely had a chance to live, and yet I knew that no one else was about to step forward in her place.

"I volunteer as tribute!" The words were out of mouth before I even had a moment to think it through. My feet moved forward purposefully as my brain buzzed in an attempt to catch up. When I was level with the first row of girls, I saw the little girl Delaney staring at me with wide-eyed thanks. I knelt down in front of her, suddenly needing to explain myself to someone, anyone. "You have so much to live for, dear. Don't let yourself get dragged into something you aren't prepared for." The Capitol guards shoved me roughly forward, and I stumbled into the stage.

Kirin offered me his hand and swung me up onto the stage. Sunshine's smiling teeth were suddenly all I could see. "Well, isn't this nice. Two volunteers this year! I almost thought we'd be sending the little one into the Games." His eyes said that he would have enjoyed that very much. I felt suddenly sick. "And what's your name, love?"

"Annie. Annie Cresta."

"How lovely. I give you the tributes from District 4!" Sunshine head stepped to the side and graced us with a sweeping hand gesture. Kirin lifted our hands that were still intertwined as the crowd cheered. All of the faces were a blur.

Kirin's voice was the only thing that made sense to my paralyzed brain. "Whatever happens, we are a team. We do this together." I nodded numbly, turning to look at him. His voice may have been confident, but in his eyes I saw the horror, horror that I had volunteered for the Games. Horror that at some point, we might have to fight each other. How had this happened? I thought desperately as Kirin and I were led away. I was about to enter the Hunger Games.

* * *

_So I didn't realize this story was no longer up...I had it posted awhile ago. In light of Catching Fire's upcoming release (YAY!) I have decided to continue with my story. Enjoy. Comment. Like. Subscribe. And may the odds be ever in your favour! ~Loreley_


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two – Alone in the Crowd

Another smiling Capitol citizen ushered Kirin and me into separate rooms. We were told that our families would be allowed to come in to wish us luck in the Games. I waited, dreading their reactions. Sure enough, when my parents came in, my mom was crying.

"Oh, honey, why did you volunteer? You haven't been trained. Kirin was our best hope, why would you go in with him? Now we can't count on anything!"

Her anguished words confused me. "What do you mean you can't count on anything?"

"Kirin was trained to be ruthless," Dad explained, "and kill without thought. But do you really think that poor kid can go in there against you? Love, against those careers from Districts 1 and 2, you present a weakness for Kirin."

"I don't understand you," I muttered, but the Capitol guards were knocking on the door, waiting for Mom and Dad to leave. I could see Tessa waiting behind them.

"Well, if you can't see it, maybe you can stop it from happening. Just don't try to go in there as his ally. You have almost no chance at winning the Games, leave him alone so he can do it himself." Dad's words shocked me. It almost sounded like he wanted me to die in the Games! I knew it wasn't very likely that I could hold my own, but to have my own Dad tell me not to even try to survive…it was heartbreaking. But with a final hug from Mom, they were gone, and Tessa came in.

"Ann," she cried, flinging her arms around me in a giant hug. Tess didn't have to say any more than that. It was a statement and a question in one word, full of every emotion imaginable. Pride, excitement, fear – mostly fear – anger, and even a bit of wonder.

"I'm sorry, Tess. I couldn't let that little girl be sacrificed to the Games. That would just be sick. And you and I both know that no one else would volunteer. No one wants to be in those Games except Kirin and the District 1 and 2 kids."

"I know why you did it." She looked at me heavily. "And I understand your reasoning, but hey, if that Finnick guy can train Kirin for the Games, he can help you too."

"Except that when he was in the village looking for possible females to train, he totally passed me up. And since only one tribute can win the Games, he might just want to focus all of his energy on Kirin. Kirin's our best option."

Tess looked like she wanted to smack me. "So what? You're giving up before you've even started? You can't do that Annie, don't do that to me!"

"I'm not! I'm just saying-" The door opened and the Capitol guards beckoned Tessa to leave. "I'm just saying that if I were Finnick, I'd pick whoever was most likely to win and place all my bets on them." Tessa was forced to walk out and I watched sadly as she turned her back on me, knowing that there was next to no chance that I would ever see her again.

There was no one else to see me off, so I was escorted onto the train that would take us to the Capitol before Kirin. On the train, it seemed that I was facing all of the previous Victors from District 4. I noticed Finnick, mostly because he was our District's most prominent mentor, giving me a searching look. Sunshine hair guy was there as well, and he took me kindly by the arm, directing me to a room in one of the back carriages.

"This is where you will be sleeping," he informed me. "By the way, my name is Sasha. I just love when you kids volunteer! It makes the Games so much more exciting." He wandered off with a slightly vacant smile. I stayed in the small room, preferring solitude to the gazes of the others on the train.

Not long after that, I felt us begin to move. I took to staring out the window as the countryside flashed past. The sound of a throat clearing made me turn around. It was Kirin.

"Hey," he smiled timidly at me. Kirin had always been able to pick up on my moods, so I assumed that right now he could sense that I was still shell-shocked. "Are you feeling all right?"

"Not really," I shook my head.

He offered me his hand, and I stood uncertainly. "Come join us to watch the rest of the Reapings." I tucked my hand into his arm and we walked toward the front of the train, where everyone else was seated, watching the Reapings from the other Districts. We lingered nervously in the doorway until Sasha spotted us and gestured for us to come forward with a wide grin. We sat together, but I didn't pay much attention to the televisions. My mind was elsewhere.

I could practically feel everyone's disapproval on my skin. I was a weakness. An obstacle. Slowly Dad's words started to make sense; if Kirin felt like I was an ally who needed protecting, he would be vulnerable. He wouldn't win. I knew I had no shot, but I could at least stay away from Kirin and give him a chance at survival. With that thought in mind, I stood abruptly, moving to lean against the side of the train. Kirin and Finnick both watched me, but neither one made a comment.

The televisions played the Hunger Games jingle, and suddenly it was like my mind was clear again, and my ears could hear beyond the fuzziness of my shock. I could hear Caesar Flickerman's voice. "And that concludes the reapings for the 70th Hunger Games! Let's take one last look at all of our tributes, shall we?" The music got louder as pictures of each district's tributes flashed across the screen. I saw Kirin's face, and my own. They stood out, but the rest were a blur. Then the screens all went black.

I don't know how long I stood there against the gently rocking wall of the train before I felt someone laid his hand on my arm. I looked up; it was Finnick. Everyone else had already left the room, including Kirin. Finnick and I were alone.

Up close I could see that his eyes were a shocking green – lighter than mine, and sparkling – although they were pinched together by his disapproving expression. "Are you all right? How are you feeling?" His voice was flat, lacking the concern that would have showed that he actually cared about my welfare.

I shook my head in frustration. "I shouldn't be here," I whispered, not sure if he could hear me and not exactly caring if he did or not. He dragged on my arm, pulling me through the train cars to the back toward my little room. We paused in the doorway.

"If you truly believe that you shouldn't be here," he finally said, slowly, "then you should have thought of that before you volunteered. That was impulsive and downright suicidal of you." He frowned.

"It was neither suicidal nor impulsive!" I protested. "Well, maybe it was a bit impulsive. But I'd rather it be me here a thousand times over than let that little girl be murdered." I yanked my arm from his grasp and turned away angrily.

I waited in silence to hear his footsteps going down the hall. "Compassion," Finnick snorted. I could practically feel him shaking his head in disgust. "Keep that up, and you'll be the first one killed. They, the other tributes, won't even find it difficult." I waited until I was sure that he had walked away, before turning around to slam the door of my room. I collapsed on my bed, a sob escaping from between my lips.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three – Stunning Arrival

A sharp knock on the door to my compartment woke me up. I had shaded the window earlier but the sun was not so bright now, so I had to grope in the dark until I found the door handle. Pulling it open, I blinked in surprised at a half-dressed Finnick.

"Kirin said he thought you were asleep," Finnick eyed me keenly. "I guess he was right. Get dressed. We'll be eating breakfast in the dining compartment. Wear something nice. We arrive at the Capitol later this morning and you'll want to make a good first impression."

"Then again maybe I don't," I muttered back just as he was about to turn away.

"Excuse me?" He turned threateningly. I had hoped he wouldn't hear me.

"Maybe I don't want to make a good first impression. Maybe I was to remain anonymous in the Games, as much as I can. If I stand out I'm a target." It was daring, I knew, to question this guy, but I still didn't know what I was doing or whether he was going to help me.

He responded by pinning me to the wall so quickly I hardly knew it had happened. There was a look in his eyes that I couldn't quite place, but he had masked it an instant later. "And if you look utterly worthless, we don't get sponsors. Don't try to play cute with me. I've seen the way he looks at you. If you volunteered so you could be here with him, then that was the wrong choice. Sponsors may be the only thing that could save his ass in these Games, so I suggest you take me seriously." With that he let me go and stalked down the corridor, leaving me breathless outside my door.

My small compartment on the train contained way too many frilly dresses for my liking; I had always been more of a jeans and a tank top type of girl. But Finnick had said to dress nice, so I pulled out a lavender sundress with a skirt that swooped slightly in the back. I looked and felt dirty, probably because I had slept in my Reaping dress from the day before. My hair was a mess too, all knotted and windswept.

* * *

By the time I came out to the dining compartment, Kirin and most of the mentors were already there. I hesitated to join them, but Finnick's words came to mind. I had to look like part of the team, I had to look accepted. I grabbed a muffin at sat on the edge of a couch, next to a couple of older victors and nowhere near Kirin. He smiled at me from across the compartment but I pretended not to see it. I had to make him believe that what I did not want right now was to be his ally, far from the truth though that might be.

"Ann, dearie, come a bit closer," says the victor on my right. Mags, a fierce little woman, smiles happily up at me. "It broke my heart, seeing you volunteer for that girl. Was she family?" I shook my head. "Friend then?"

"No," I murmur, thinking again of the girl's scared little face. "I have no idea who she was. I don't think I had ever met her."

"Why, dear! I was hardly expecting that!" Mags looked shocked. "I've never heard of such a thing! Why would you volunteer for a stranger when you are not even trained?"

I shrugged, still not sure myself. "She would have died in the Games. She was too young."

Mags placed her withered old hand over mine. "And you are not?" I had no idea what to say so I sat silently, withdrawing into myself. Mags patted my hand kindly and turned away, joining another conversation.

"Annie! Over here!" I hear Kirin call. He is standing by the windows with Finnick, who nods at me. We have arrived at the Capitol and the train is slowing down now. I join the guys, peering outside at the massive crowd that has gathered to welcome the tributes.

A rainbow of color assaults my eyes; hair, clothing, make-up. The Capitol people look as crazy in person as they do on the television! Sunshine guy from the Reaping looks positively tame compared to some of these people. Kirin rolls the window down as the train slows to a crawl and sticks his torso out to wave at everybody.

"Kirin! What on Earth are you doing?" I demanded.

He turns back slightly to shout at me, "Being friendly! Lesson number one!"

Finnick chuckles behind me. "How to be a winning tribute: get the people to love you. Go on." I put on a smile and wave a bit out the window, but I am not about to dive into the crowd like Kirin seems like he might do any second now. With my luck I would die before even entering the Games.

"Come on now, come on!" Mags grabs my arms and pulls me toward the doors. "You've got to go and meet everyone!" She turns around briefly to position me next to Kirin, who is being dragged away from the window by Finnick. Her quick fingers tug twice at my dress to straighten it. "Lovely choice with the lavender by the way, it gives your eyes a lovely sparkle."

"Yes, yes, Mags." Finnick interrupts impatiently. "Now, you too. This is important. Make them love you. Smiles, give me genuine smiles!" And with that, the train doors open. Kirin and I are engulfed by the noise of the crowd. I can see the tributes from the first three districts walking slowly through the crowd in front of us, evenly spaced like some parade. They are all at ease, basking in their glory.

I wish I could be like them. I wish I had been trained. I find the floating cameras and flash them a big smile, knowing that everyone back home will be watching me. Kirin and I step off the train to massive applause and cheers. The words of the little girl, Delaney, spring into my mind. _Thank you. I thought…I thought it was going be me. I hope you win._ For her – I was doing this for her.

* * *

_I hope you're all quite confused about Finnick by now. So am I? No idea where this story is taking me... :P ~Loreley_


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